STYLE

Wine Producer’s Roots

from Nový Šaldorf near Znojmo

Reach Wallachia

The Špalek family winery is not the only wine producer whose family roots can be traced back to

Wallachia. This special will focus on these traditional family wineries and wine cellars in the Blue

Cellar District of Nový Šaldorf.

Mr František Špalek has been the manager of Winery

Špalek since 1970. His father, Josef Špalek, who was

a gardener, came to Šaldorf in 1945 with five children,

hoping for a warmer climate and fertile land from

Wallachia. They had another two children in Šaldorf;

the youngest, František, was born in 1949. His winery

is also represented by his wife Marta and their sons

Petr Ilgner and Marek Špalek. They both studied winemaking and have extensive international experience.

Winery Špalek has gone through a true, great

development since the revolution, and ranks among

quality constants of the national wine market. They

operate in BIO mode with 12ha of vineyards in the

outstanding vineyard estate Kraví hora near Znojmo.

Let us introduce wines typical for this area: Sauvignon,

Riesling (Ryzlink rýnský), and Gruner Veltliner

(Veltlínské zelené). Winery Špalek has also earned

a great reputation for its cuvée, with a registered

family mark Gryllus, in red, pink and white varieties. In

1995 they introduced a fortified wine, Šaler (liqueur

wine), a very unusual product in our country. Their

latest novelty is of the der Ilgner brand, an Austrian

of South Moravia. This product range consists of nonwinery products often inspired by Austrian traditions.

The current hottest hits include an apricot nectar--a

thick, sweet non-alcoholic drink intensely orange in

colour with a compelling apricot smell. The nectar

made from apricots grown in Špalek family orchards

contains a minimum of 45% apricots, no artificial

colors, preservatives or stabilizers.

All products by Family Winery Špalek are sold in the

shop VIIINO in Ostrava.

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